Ecosystems and Habitats Teaching Resources
Explore printable ecosystems worksheets, digital habitat activities and more for teaching this important element of the elementary and middle school science curriculum!
This collection of teacher resources was created by teachers to align with NGSS standards, providing you with everything you need to teach kids about biodiversity, habitats and more!
New to teaching about habitats and ecosystems in the primary classroom, or just looking for some fresh ways to engage your students on the topics? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including a handy definitions for kids on each topic, plus a breakdown of the difference between these two important science terms.
What Is a Habitat? A Definition for Kids
Do you need a quick and easy way to explain the meaning of habitat to your students? Our teacher team has created a definition you can use in the classroom to do just that!
A habitat is a place where plants and animals live. It provides the things that they need to survive, like food, water and shelter.
5 Habitat Examples for Kids to Share in Your Classroom
This definition is a good starting point, but perhaps you're looking for a handy list of habitat examples you can share? We've got you covered with that too!
Please note that this list includes five of the planet's major habitats. Some scientists list as many as 16, however this list includes those our students are most likely to need to know about in primary school.
- Desert — The desert habitat is known for its dry and hot conditions, where animals such as the camel and plants such as cacti thrive. Some examples include the Gobi Desert in China and the Sahara Desert in Africa.
- Marine — Also known as the aquatic habitat, marine is larger of all habitats on the planet. Rivers, lakes, streams and, of course, the five oceans on planet Earth provide homes for a variety of marine animals live — from fish to whales to coral and much more.
- Polar — This habitat is found on the two ends of the earth, called the North and South Poles. Plants and animals that live in the polar habitat have adapted to its extreme cold temperatures.
- Forest – The forest habitat makes up nearly a third of the world's landmass. This habitat can be broken down into different types of forests, including the coniferous forests, coastal forests and tropical rainforests. The latter are known for being warm and very moist — just as the name implies, this habitat gets a lot of rain! The most famous of the world's rainforests is the Amazon which covers 2.6 million square miles.
- Grassland — One of the largest habitats in the world, grassland typically has moderate to warm weather and plenty of grass for animals to graze on.
What Is an Ecosystem? A Kid-Friendly Definition
We've covered the meaning of habitat, but what about ecosystem? Here's a definition from our teacher team to use in the classroom:
An ecosystem is a community of living organisms and nonliving things in a particular area. For example, an ecosystem can include plants, animals and microorganisms that are all living, as well as soil, water and sunlight, which are not.
The living and nonliving things in an ecosystem interact with each other and are interdependent.
Ecosystem vs. Habitat — What's the Difference?
These two science concepts are clearly interrelated, which can be confusing for students. So let's outline the differences.
Habitats
Kids can think of a habitat as a specific place where certain plants and animals live. A habitat is a home, and it's where those plants and animals have everything they need to survive — sort of like the things that students might find in the place where they live. There is shelter, food and water.
Ecosystems
On the other hand, it can be helpful for students to remember that an ecosystem is like a big, interconnected community of habitats.
An ecosystem also goes beyond just plant and animal life.
This larger system includes both living (plants and animals) and non-living (air, water) things. It also includes all the interactions and relationships between the living and non-living things within it.
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What Animals Migrate? Teaching Slide Deck
Discover why animals migrate and which ones make the longest journeys with an interactive teaching slide deck.
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Desert Animal Adaptations - Trading Card Templates
Discover amazing desert animals’ adaptations and display your learning with printable animal trading card templates.
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Animals that Use Camouflage - Fact File Cards
Discover animals that camouflage to survive using these printable Animal Fact File cards.
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Naked Mole Rats – Comprehension Worksheet
Read and learn facts about the naked mole rat with a printable reading comprehension worksheet pack for 5th grade.
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Ocean Animals Word Wall Cards with Pictures
Introduce your students to the amazing animals in the sea with an illustrated ocean animal word wall.
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Ocean & Marine Word Wall Vocabulary
64 marine life word wall vocabulary cards.
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Desert Word Wall Vocabulary
Spark discussion and build academic vocabulary with a desert related vocabulary word wall.
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Free Printable Nature Scavenger Hunt
Make outdoor play a learning opportunity with our free printable nature scavenger hunt PDF.
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Living and Non-Living Things - Word Wall Vocabulary
Discover the world of living and nonliving things, starting with a printable vocabulary word wall..
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Plant and Animal Adaptations – Word Wall Vocabulary
Build scientific vocabulary skills with a printable display of words relating to plant and animal adaptations.
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Human Impact on the Environment-Research Project
Uncover how humans positively and negatively impact the different biomes around the world with a guided research project.
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What is Pollution? Instructional Slide Deck
Show your students the types of pollution and their effects with an instructional slide deck.
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Protecting Native Plants and Animals – Comprehension Worksheets
Build comprehension skills and learn about human impact on ecosystems with a reading passage and worksheets.
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Oil Spill Experiment
Investigate water pollution and discover the effects of oil spills on wildlife with a hands-on oil spill experiment
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Animals and Their Habitats- Interactive Activity
Help a lost polar bear (and his friends) return to the correct habitat with a Google Slides interactive activity.
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Animals and Their Habitats - Cut and Match Worksheets
Match animals with their habitats with a set of cut and paste worksheets.
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Deciduous Forest Biome Slide Deck
An 11-slide editable PowerPoint to use in the classroom when learning about deciduous forests.
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Effects of Physical Location Sort
Help children learn how the environment affects those that live in a specific area with a sorting activity.
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Producer, Consumer, Decomposer - Poster
A poster explaining the roles of the Sun, producers, consumers, and decomposers in the food chain.
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Endangered Species Fact Cards
Explore 64 species and subspecies that are on the critically endangered list with this set of fact cards.
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Biodiversity Poster
A poster to help your students explore the topic of biodiversity.
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Antarctic Wildlife Poster
A poster highlighting some of the main wildlife found in Antarctica.
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What is a Wetland? Poster
A poster with information about the plant life, climate, and annual rainfall that characterize a wetland environment.
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Wet and Dry Environments Word Wall Vocabulary
48 wet and dry environment vocabulary word wall cards.
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The Natural Environment of South America PowerPoint
A 17-slide editable PowerPoint template to use when introducing students to the climate, vegetation, and animals of South America.
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Tundra PowerPoint
An 11-slide editable PowerPoint to use in the classroom when learning about tundras.
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Temperate Grassland PowerPoint
An 11-slide editable PowerPoint to use in the classroom when learning about temperate grasslands.
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Desert PowerPoint
An 11-slide editable PowerPoint to use in the classroom when learning about deserts.
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Develop a Habitat - Garden Project
A project-based assessment task for students to demonstrate their understanding of how habitats can be preserved and protected in and around where people live.
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Natural Environments - PowerPoint
A Natural Environments-themed PowerPoint to add some color and design to your classroom PowerPoint presentations.
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Wetland Word Wall Vocabulary
A set of wetland-related vocabulary word wall cards.
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The Importance of Environments Unit Plan
This Science unit addresses the importance of ecosystems to plants and animals and the ways in which they can be protected.
- Ecosystems and Habitats Worksheets
- Ecosystems and Habitats for Kindergarten
- Ecosystems and Habitats for 1st Grade
- Ecosystems and Habitats for 2nd Grade
- Ecosystems and Habitats for 3rd Grade
- Ecosystems and Habitats for 4th Grade
- Ecosystems and Habitats for 5th Grade
- Ecosystems and Habitats for 6th Grade